2026 FALL UPDATE

Since returning to Tokyo in March, I’ve settled back into ministry and have several important updates to share, including my upcoming transition from SEND to AXIA on September 30th.

記事の後半には、日本の友人の皆さんに向けて、最近感じていることを日本語でも書きました。よかったら、そちらも読んでみてください！

THANKFUL FOR SEND

In the fall of 2019, while working as a civil engineer near Chicago, I asked my boss for three months away to explore becoming a missionary through an internship with SEND in Japan. I wasn’t sure whether I would still have a job when I returned, but by God’s grace, he agreed to hold my position open. With that assurance, I left for Japan, and my life has never been the same since.

Coming to Japan in 2019 was an incredible experience. It was my first time traveling overseas, so almost everything felt new and unfamiliar. SEND was particularly gracious to me and arranged opportunities that allowed me to experience different aspects of life and ministry in Japan. Their goal was to help me understand what becoming a long-term missionary would actually involve.

In March 2022, I returned to Tokyo as a full-time missionary with SEND International. They helped me find a church, a place to live, and a language school. They also supported me through those first few years as I adjusted to life in Japan and began establishing myself in ministry. I am grateful for the practical help, experience, and stability SEND provided during that important season of my life.

WHY THE CHANGE?

SEND is a large missionary organization that provides its missionaries with extensive administrative and practical support. Naturally, providing those services comes with costs. For a new missionary entering Japan, I believe those services can be well worth the expense. They certainly were for me.

Over the past four years, however, my circumstances have gradually changed. I have become established in the Friday Terrace ministry, joined a ministry team that includes Japanese Christians, and developed many relationships outside of SEND that provide pastoral accountability, practical assistance, and personal support.

As my circumstances changed, I began to consider whether I still needed the same level of organizational support and whether the services provided continued to justify their cost.

This question came to a head last winter when I spoke with SEND about its health-insurance requirement. At the time of writing this, SEND requires me to maintain a U.S. health-insurance policy that covers me while living overseas. This international coverage is particularly expensive, costing me more each month than my rent in Japan. Since I already use Japan’s national health insurance for my medical care, I began to question whether paying for both policies was the best use of the financial support entrusted to me.

After much prayer and conversations with SEND International, my home church and its elders, the Friday Terrace ministry team, and several trusted mentors and friends, I felt comfortable pursuing a new arrangement. This was not a quick decision or one I made alone.

THE OPPORTUNITY

I have always believed that parachurch ministries like Friday Terrace should be connected to the local church. One of a missionary’s main roles is to build relationships with people who might never enter a church on their own and help connect them with a church community. For that to happen, the missionary and the local church must also learn to trust and work with one another.

Over the past few years, Friday Terrace has developed a closer relationship with Haramachi Church, where I now believe God wants me to serve. We do not see eye to eye on everything, and differences in culture, expectations, and communication can sometimes be challenging. Nevertheless, there is a great deal of grace and goodwill between us, along with a shared desire to reach the surrounding community.

One way I have been growing in this relationship is by preaching in Japanese once a month. This is one of the hardest challenges I have faced as a missionary because my speaking and listening abilities remain limited. Preparing a sermon, however, gives me time to choose my words carefully and communicate biblical truths that I could not yet explain clearly in an ordinary conversation. It allows me to serve the church while continuing to grow as both a missionary and a Japanese speaker.

At the same time that I was reconsidering my organizational needs, I began sharing with the leaders of Haramachi Church my vision for a closer relationship between the church and Friday Terrace. Through those conversations, a new opportunity emerged: Haramachi Church was willing to sponsor my visa.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

To clarify a few things, I am leaving SEND on good terms and will continue working with them through our Friday Terrace ministry. I will remain a missionary, and Haramachi Church will not be providing me any financial support. AXIA International will receive and administer my support in the United States instead of SEND International, while Haramachi Church will sponsor my visa. My regular ministry activities will continue as usual.

This arrangement gives us an opportunity to build a closer relationship with Haramachi Church and allows a larger portion of my support to go toward life and ministry in Japan.

I will continue with SEND through September 30. Afterward, I will begin receiving my support through AXIA. Beginning October 1, SEND will no longer accept donations for my support, and all recurring donations set up for me will be cancelled automatically. If you currently support me through SEND, information on how to continue that support through AXIA will be sent via email shortly. If you’re ready to set up your giving through AXIA, please visit my Support page now. 🙇

MINISTRY HIGHLIGHTS

With such an important transition ahead, I needed to focus much of this update on my upcoming move to AXIA. However, there have also been plenty of ministry highlights over the past six to eight months. Since many of you aren’t part of my Facebook group, let me share a few quick highlights:

EASTER

This Easter, we invited the Friday Terrace families to church and hosted an Easter egg hunt in a nearby park. Afterwards, we made pancakes at Mayu and Levi’s house, where Mayu read the children a book about the true meaning of Easter.

DANCE CAMP

Each year, I help film a two-day dance camp led by Japanese Christian dance teachers, where most of the girls attending are not Christians. This year, many raised their hands in response to an invitation to follow Christ, a response that encouraged me, even though we cannot yet know its lasting impact. My friends’ boldness in sharing the gospel challenged me to take more steps of faith in my own ministry.

KARUIZAWA

In August, our Friday Terrace team traveled to Karuizawa to help with a conference for Christian missionaries. We led the youth in games and discussion groups based on each day’s message. The trip also gave us time to grow closer as a team and enjoy the cooler mountain weather, a welcome break from Tokyo’s summer heat!

On that same trip, Andrew and I stopped at a ramen restaurant and the owner, Shoko-san, came out to greet us and ended up spending quite a bit of time talking with us. When we told her we were missionaries, she seemed to have a favorable view of Christians and told us she wanted to be friends. She gave us extra food to take home, showed us her house next door, hugged us before we left, and even kissed us on the cheek!

Recently, a friend of mine happened to be traveling through the same area and was able to stop by and give Shoko-san a copy of the photo we took together. I wrote a short message on the back explaining why we are in Japan and included a Bible verse. I don't know how much Shoko-san understands about Christianity, but it was a memorable encounter and a small opportunity to share with her why we are here.

PRAYER REQUESTS

1. Please pray for God’s protection over our team. Even though we generally experience peace and unity, we know that the stress of ministry can create opportunities for the enemy to sow seeds of division. In the absence of clear communication, the flesh often assumes the worst. We have been intentional about discussing the various challenges we face, and I would love for these kinds of healthy habits of communication to continue.

   
   

2. Please continue to pray for my Japanese ability to grow. I often feel inadequate speaking Japanese and I do not want my fear of failure to hinder me from trying. I may never speak perfect Japanese, but when I feel discouraged, I want to remember that God’s grace is sufficient for me.

   
   

3. Please pray for continued contentment in my singleness. I do not know what God has for me, but up until now I have always felt that singleness has been His will for me. The freedom I have in my time, responsibilities, and finances has been very advantageous to me as a missionary. If this is where He continues to lead me, then I want to continue to be at peace with it, and protect my heart from wanting something that is not in His will.

今、思っていること

今回の近況報告では、主に今月末に予定している、私の活動を支える団体の変更について書いています。でも、日本語で読んでくださる皆さんにも、最近感じていることを少しお伝えしたいと思います。

最近、自分の日本語の会話力にがっかりするようになってきました。周りで何が話されているかは、ある程度わかります。でも、自分で文を組み立てて、思っていることをきちんと伝えるのは、今でも難しいです。そのもどかしさから、人が集まる場では、つい逃げて隠れたくなることもあります。もともと内向的な私には、なかなか大変です！

そんなとき、よく思い出す聖書の言葉があり、その言葉に希望をもらっています。コリントの信徒への手紙二の12章9節です。わかりやすく言うと、神の恵みは私にとって十分であり、神の力は弱さの中でこそ十分に現れる、という言葉です。

神は、ご自分にもっと頼ることを私たちが学べるように、時には難しい状況に私たちを置かれることがあるのだと思います。その難しさを必ず取り除いてくださるわけではありませんが、それに向き合うために必要な力を与えてくださいます。ここでいう神の「恵み」を、私はそのように理解しています。

正直に言うと、私は自分の弱さを感じるのが好きではありません。日本に来る前は、たいていのことは自分でできるという自信がありました。でも今は、日本語をうまく話せないことで、もどかしさや難しさを感じています。宣教師だからといって、いつも自信があるわけでも、悩みがないわけでもありません。私も皆さんと同じように、落ち込んだり、ときには不安になったりします。

この聖書の言葉は、神が私の日本語を完璧にしてくださるという約束ではないと思っています。これからも文法を間違えるでしょうし、思っていることを十分に伝えられるようにはならないかもしれません。それでも、神の恵みは私にとって十分だという約束は変わりません。日本語をうまく話せない私でも、神は私を通して、人々がイエス・キリストを知るきっかけをつくってくださると信じています。

だから、私にとって難しくても、これからも挑戦し続けたいと思っています。神の恵みは十分であり、うまく説明できなくても、私の思いは、それでも何とか伝わると信じて。🙂